Quoted from Seth I like female leads. And, really, in terms of movies, there aren't enough of them.

That's where the Descent comes in. That is what's unique about the movie. People usually think that girls are some sort of type of people who are obsessed with how they look, talk about hot guys, and don't do anything that exciting. But in this movie, they're hardcore bitches with attitude and learn how to kick butts.

I always want to write a movie with a lead female character who are hardcore and tend to get a little cooler then men, but I'm afraid I might write it wrong. Such as the girl starts out as a nobody and looks innocent and you think her future is helpless, but suddenly she turns into some sort of fighter and ends up saving everyone from whatever's coming to them.

But I usually tend on using men as main characters (not to be sexist in any way).

Sean

I'm a big fan of strong female characters as well, especially in horror movies. It's just such an intriguing concept to me. The Descent did a great job with it but for me, it all goes back to Ripley in Alien, who takes the cake as the strongest heroine of all.

I've written two scripts featuring a strong female protagonist thus far and hope to write more in the future.

Quoted from Death Monkey I haven't actually finished any of the scripts with these kinds of themes or protagonists (hell, I've only finished one short), but when I do, I'll let you know...

Cool. Myself, I'm having a difficult time finishing my feature. I've worked up a couple of different drafts, neither of which I like. I just can't seem to bring it all together -- not in a way that's satisfying.

Quoted from Death Monkey I've never read Bukowski but often been told I should. So I probably will! Got any suggestions where to start?

I haven't read any of his books,  but I've read many of his poems -- which, imo, are great. He's the kinda poet that people either love or hate. Anyway, there are hundreds of his poems on line. I'd start there.

Seth

Quoted from Zombie Sean That's where the Descent comes in. That is what's unique about the movie. People usually think that girls are some sort of type of people who are obsessed with how they look, talk about hot guys, and don't do anything that exciting. But in this movie, they're hardcore bitches with attitude and learn how to kick butts. I always want to write a movie with a lead female character who are hardcore and tend to get a little cooler then men, but I'm afraid I might write it wrong. Such as the girl starts out as a nobody and looks innocent and you think her future is helpless, but suddenly she turns into some sort of fighter and ends up saving everyone from whatever's coming to them. But I usually tend on using men as main characters (not to be sexist in any way). Sean

Exactly.

What was great about The Descent's characters were the fact that none of them were really tough chicks per se, at least those flaunting that attitude quickly faltered (like Holly), and they felt like genuinely real people who realized what they had to do to survive. Throw some already existing tensions into the mix and you've got some great suspense.

And I don't think there's anything sexist about using men as main characters. If so, then it's sexist to tend to use women like I do.

I don't think sexism applies here, unless you vehemently make your girls fragile og scared and your men smart and strong, and that's not the impression I got.

Most of my leads tend to be men in their late 30s or early 40s who've lead violent lives and, whether they realize it or not, must do something to redeem themselves.  The women they love are usually much smarter than they are and know what's wrong with their men, but love them anyway.

My protags are a bit more diverse, but usually fall somewhere along the lines of a character who seems to do nothing but evil, greedy things, but why he does them makes perfect sense to him.

Every now and then I'll write something about a character in his teens or a love interest who's dumb as a rock, but I tend to stick to the types I like the most to write.  I could be pigeon-holing myself by doing so, but at least that way I remain interested in what I'm writing.

Quoted from Death Monkey Almost all of my scripts feature a young female protagonist, often a teenager, that somehow feels completely disconnected or rejected by soceity in some way. And I'm a guy. I don't know what compels me to write about girls, or women, but I guess I just find them fascinating...

Females are easier to write in screenplay or theater form because women are much more outward with their feelings.  Since screenplays are image oriented and visually orented, it would make sense that writers would use women characters as their main characters.  Espcially in drama stories and/or romance films.  Men just don't show their feelings.  If they do they are probably considered soft, gay, or just not manly enough.

You ever notice that almost every romantic comedy has some sort of "main" female character that is very insightful of everything and everyone, and most actioin films have male leads?

Or how about most of the males in romantic comedies are just pathetic excuses of nice guys and dudes (just die already Hugh Grant, or get a sex change) that let the women lead them?  Or in an action movie the women are either just damsels in distress or if they are antagonists, they hardly ever say a word?  They just stand there and kill people with a poker face?

It's just how the two sexes are.  Women are much more emotional and show it, and men just want to accomplish a goal, get the girl, and save the day.  

I'll even prove it to you.  Try to write an action film short with a male lead and a female lead with the same exact plot line.  Watch how differently the scripts come out.  I tried this out and I noticed that with the female there is a lot mroe dialogue and analysis of the "mission" as opposed to the male where he just went in and did it.

I don't mean to come off as sexist either because I love strong female characters.  Especially in action films.  A female assassin is so cool in my eyes.  Everything a female does in an action film seems twice as bettter as compared to if a man were to do it, which can also help with the novelty of your idea when selling it to producers.    

Quoted from guyjackson Females are easier to write in screenplay or theater form because women are much more outward with their feelings.  Since screenplays are image oriented and visually orented, it would make sense that writers would use women characters as their main characters.  Espcially in drama stories and/or romance films.  Men just don't show their feelings.  If they do they are probably considered soft, gay, or just not manly enough. You ever notice that almost every romantic comedy has some sort of "main" female character that is very insightful of everything and everyone, and most actioin films have male leads? Or how about most of the males in romantic comedies are just pathetic excuses of nice guys and dudes (just die already Hugh Grant, or get a sex change) that let the women lead them?  Or in an action movie the women are either just damsels in distress or if they are antagonists, they hardly ever say a word?  They just stand there and kill people with a poker face? It's just how the two sexes are.  Women are much more emotional and show it, and men just want to accomplish a goal, get the girl, and save the day.   I'll even prove it to you.  Try to write an action film short with a male lead and a female lead with the same exact plot line.  Watch how differently the scripts come out.  I tried this out and I noticed that with the female there is a lot mroe dialogue and analysis of the "mission" as opposed to the male where he just went in and did it. I don't mean to come off as sexist either because I love strong female characters.  Especially in action films.  A female assassin is so cool in my eyes.  Everything a female does in an action film seems twice as bettter as compared to if a man were to do it, which can also help with the novelty of your idea when selling it to producers.

Well I think we can agree that a female stereotype is easy to write in a script. but the thing is, all my girls ("all my girls"...I like that ) are the exact opposite of that and often shun the typical female characteristics. That's because the thing I hate most in the world are clichées and stereotypes (unless they're tongue-in-cheek). When it comes to dialogue I live by the rule that says that people almost never say what they mean.    
Like "I love you". I don't think I would ever have a character actually utter this line, because it's been cheapened by 80 years of talkies and sit-coms. The words hardly mean anything anymore. Britney Spears loves her fans, right? She tells them after a show.

So what the most powerful way of showing that someone says "I love you" without actually having they say the line? Well, have them say something trivial, but show in their mannerisms or facial expressions or a simple gesture what they really mean.

In most cases I think feelings should be conveyed in anything but dialogue. At least important feelings.

When it comes to action, I agree having women do it seems cooler. But that's just in the aestetics. Women are naturally more graceful than men. Also there is something really cool about a woman wielding a shotgun and donning other people's blood on her clothes. Like Krista Allen in Feast. Or Milla Jochovich in...well I actually didn't like the RE movies, but still. Maybe that's just me.

I've only written two scripts so far, but I've noticed in both of them that there is a slutty, hot chick, probibly in their late teens, early twenties. In Deadhunt, i think of Emily being Jordan Ladd, in "In the Mind of Satan", I Picture Brenda being Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

The only script I've ever completed (and am in the process of completely overhauling) involved a twenty-something female as the protagonist.  She's an assassin, but not in the Kill Bill vein... more of a Martin Blank/Leon with a vagina and a lot more issues.

Other script ideas I have in various states of development include...
A professional golfer with anger management issues in his late twenties.
A USAAF pilot in his early thirties during World War Two with all sorts of issues.
Boudicca's eldest daughter attempting to finish what her mother started.
An injured private from a dead tank crew in his early twenties behind enemy lines in Holland.
An American football player who falls in love with an English girl who plays soccer for his university's women's soccer team. Winds up following her and becomes a "keeper".

I guess you could say I'm all over the place.

I don't really have one specific type of person or type of person that I write about, but my main characters are usually male. I usually base my lead protaganist loosely around someone I know, or am familar with.

For example, I have written scripts where the main character has been based upon myself, around friends and around family members.

Quoted from Death Monkey Why can't we have a woman like Bill Murray in Broken Flowers? A girl like Holden Caulfield? A woman who is neither an accessory to the male protagonist nor an empowered ambitious go-getter? I want a gal who's confused about life, who doesn't know what she wants but is damn sure what she doesn't want! Desillusioned, naive, and neither sex-kitten nor feminist!

Juno so owes me royalties. I'm looking at you, Diablo Cody.

Really good thread.

I write within the scope that I know.  I've lived longer so it's easier to write from a few more age perspectives.  

I don't want to write a protagonist that is a lawyer for instance because I just wouldn't do a good job.  I know nothing about law and I don't know any lawyers that I can tap for information.  However, if I met a lawyer who had a story to tell, I could definitely work with him if that's what he wanted.

My characters usually hold regular types of jobs or are self employed in a field which I have a chance at researching.

I remember reading once about how many mistakes are often made in fantasy books regarding horses.  This came from someone who looked after and trained horses.

This is the kind of things writers have to be careful with.  If we start writing over our heads, we are often going to miss the mark.  LOL (Over our heads - Miss the mark)  Explain that to ESL.

Anyways, this is a hard thing I think for writers.  We need to have some kind of experience or knowledge in a field in order to write a character around it properly.  Even if it's just reading biographies or something real regarding first hand experience.  But the best is if we have a personal contact that can help us.  Police officers, Nurses.  I actually received some interesting stuff from a nurse I know.

Sandra

My characters are usually young, and they're usually the black horse in the family, or they're trying to connect with their family in some way.

My characters also deal with death. It's something that's impacted me my whole life, and I can't help but write about it. Positively, of course. I'm no psycho.

I think I have a balance of male and female leads.

I'm still getting a feel for the kind of scripts I'm wanting to write so I'm trying to vary my characters as much as possible. So far I base characters on people I have met, but just using the extremes of their personality.

On a side note. Apparently Tarantino met a stunt man in a bar and got talking about his job, said that he called his car 'deathproof' - thanks very much.

I read somewhere here, when I first joined, to go against the whole 'write what you know' and go to different place, research things you don't know about etc. I try to do that as much as poss.

I like to write what I know, but make it different. Say you just experienced a heartbreak. Keep the situation, but change the setting. The emotions are the same, but the characters, setting, time period could all be different. Those are the things you research.

That's what I think "write what you know" means. Write about the emotions, not the specific situations.